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Banker accused of conspiring in flipping fraud

Published: Wednesday, November 14, 2012 at 6:33 p.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, November 14, 2012 at 6:33 p.m.

Federal prosecutors showed that their investigation into the property flipping fraud centered on Southwest Florida is not over by indicting another banker on Wednesday.

Scott J. Schuhriemen, a former BB&T loan officer, is charged with conspiring to make false statements to a federally insured lender. Schuhriemen provided scheme mastermind Craig Adams, his chief lieutenant, Rich Bobka and some associates with at least 19 home equity loans in 2006 and 2007.

He is the 20th person to be indicted in the case since February 2011, and during sentencing hearings last month, federal prosecutors indicated that he might not be the last.

In open court on Oct. 31, Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Tuite said others involved in the conspiracy could be prosecuted, “including two who have already hired lawyers.”

An expert tennis player who attended Riverview High School with Bobka, Schuhriemen got involved in the conspiracy just before the downturn in the economy helped to expose a fraud that had been under way for 11 years.

The scheme involved artificially inflating the value of more than 150 properties and lying to lenders. That allowed the conspirators to get far more in loans than their deals would have merited, a total of $200 million in mortgages through the course of the decade-long effort.

Schuhriemen’s role was to provide second and third loans on properties already bought by Adams, Bobka and others.

Those loans made Schuhriemen seem like a star employee at BB&T — an out-of-state bank that was trying to gain traction in the Sarasota market. But the loans were based on fraudulent information about the borrowers’ income, assets, employment and the actual purchase price of the underlying property.

One of the loans approved in 2006 went to Adams’ octogenarian aunt, Norma Faye Pearce. Another went to Adams’ mother, Jocelyn Adams. Their signatures were forged on the closing documents.

“On or about May 16, 2006, the defendant falsely and fraudulently notarized the signature of Norma Faye Pearce on a mortgage of real estate for BB&T loan in the amount of $150,000,” the federal indictment against Schuhriemen indictment states.

The indictment also says that Schuhriemen did the same thing when he notarized Adams’ mother’s signature on a $150,000 loan a month later.

When contacted about the signatures and his ties to Adams and his associates in 2009, Schuhriemen said: “Those guys cost me my job.” He would not elaborate.

During Adams’ four days on the witness stand against the only three defendants who chose to go to trial — Paula Hornberger, George Cavallo and Joel Streinz — Adams testified that Schuhriemen helped him get several loans in the names of his mother and his aunt without either of them knowing.

“Did you have a discussion with Scott Schuhriemen? Did he know the loan you were securing was on a property you did not own?” a defense attorney asked Adams during cross examination.

“Yes,” Adams replied.

It is not clear how many others might be indicted in the flipping fraud case.

But prosecutors have made it clear that they are continuing to talk to members of the conspiracy who already have been indicted, including Adams, Bobka and former mortgage bankers Jonathan Glucker and Mark Leetzow.

Adams, Bobka and Glucker have been sentenced in the case.

Leetzow’s sentencing was delayed until Dec. 13 so he could help the government with its ongoing investigation.

<p>Federal prosecutors showed that their investigation into the property flipping fraud centered on Southwest Florida is not over by indicting another banker on Wednesday.</p><p>Scott J. Schuhriemen, a former BB&T loan officer, is charged with conspiring to make false statements to a federally insured lender. Schuhriemen provided scheme mastermind Craig Adams, his chief lieutenant, Rich Bobka and some associates with at least 19 home equity loans in 2006 and 2007.</p><p>He is the 20th person to be indicted in the case since February 2011, and during sentencing hearings last month, federal prosecutors indicated that he might not be the last.</p><p>In open court on Oct. 31, Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Tuite said others involved in the conspiracy could be prosecuted, “including two who have already hired lawyers.”</p><p>An expert tennis player who attended Riverview High School with Bobka, Schuhriemen got involved in the conspiracy just before the downturn in the economy helped to expose a fraud that had been under way for 11 years.</p><p>The scheme involved artificially inflating the value of more than 150 properties and lying to lenders. That allowed the conspirators to get far more in loans than their deals would have merited, a total of $200 million in mortgages through the course of the decade-long effort.</p><p>Schuhriemen's role was to provide second and third loans on properties already bought by Adams, Bobka and others.</p><p>Those loans made Schuhriemen seem like a star employee at BB&T — an out-of-state bank that was trying to gain traction in the Sarasota market. But the loans were based on fraudulent information about the borrowers' income, assets, employment and the actual purchase price of the underlying property.</p><p>One of the loans approved in 2006 went to Adams' octogenarian aunt, Norma Faye Pearce. Another went to Adams' mother, Jocelyn Adams. Their signatures were forged on the closing documents.</p><p>“On or about May 16, 2006, the defendant falsely and fraudulently notarized the signature of Norma Faye Pearce on a mortgage of real estate for BB&T loan in the amount of $150,000,” the federal indictment against Schuhriemen indictment states.</p><p>The indictment also says that Schuhriemen did the same thing when he notarized Adams' mother's signature on a $150,000 loan a month later.</p><p>When contacted about the signatures and his ties to Adams and his associates in 2009, Schuhriemen said: “Those guys cost me my job.” He would not elaborate.</p><p>During Adams' four days on the witness stand against the only three defendants who chose to go to trial — Paula Hornberger, George Cavallo and Joel Streinz — Adams testified that Schuhriemen helped him get several loans in the names of his mother and his aunt without either of them knowing.</p><p>“Did you have a discussion with Scott Schuhriemen? Did he know the loan you were securing was on a property you did not own?” a defense attorney asked Adams during cross examination.</p><p>“Yes,” Adams replied.</p><p>It is not clear how many others might be indicted in the flipping fraud case.</p><p>But prosecutors have made it clear that they are continuing to talk to members of the conspiracy who already have been indicted, including Adams, Bobka and former mortgage bankers Jonathan Glucker and Mark Leetzow.</p><p>Adams, Bobka and Glucker have been sentenced in the case.</p><p>Leetzow's sentencing was delayed until Dec. 13 so he could help the government with its ongoing investigation.</p>